With farmers struggling to provide feed for their livestock, the NSW Government relaxed kangaroo culling laws – a move first announced in June.

Under the new provisions farmers can apply over the phone for culling licences, there is an increased limit on the number of kangaroos that may be culled on a property based on its size and farmers will no longer need to tag carcasses.

"In parts of NSW kangaroos are in plague proportions,” NSW Primary Industries Minister Niall Blair said in Parliament this week.

“Coming off the back of some very good years leading up to 2018, the kangaroo population in this State is now significantly increasing."

However, a population report conducted by the NSW Government shows the number of both Red and Eastern Grey kangaroos actually dropped between 2016-2017 in the Western Plains region, in the far north west of the state; a large area that covers Tibooburra, Broken Hill, Lower Darling, Cobar, Bourke, Narrabri, Coonabarabran and Griffith.

Australia is battling the worst drought in over one hundred years. (PA/AAP)

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"The kangaroos are dying too, and farmers are fencing off paddocks so they can’t get in and eat. All the native animals are struggling, especially out west,” Susan Thomas, a farmer from Kanimbla Valley in NSW, told .

As the land dries up, and grass becomes scarce the animals are being forced to adapt their behaviour and move closer to human habitation to survive.

Gus Greenaway, a farmer from the Rowena region of NSW in the far northeast of the state, has experienced this first hand.

“My family has found kangaroos competing for stock feed to be a huge problem. Generally, kangaroos eat nothing but grass, but we and many others have found them to be now eating cottonseed that is put out for stock.

While kangaroos are better adapted to drought conditions compared to cows and sheep, they are not immune.

Derek Spielman, senior lecturer in veterinary pathology at University of Sydney, told nine.com.au in dry conditions populations will drop because of two factors.

“In drought, kangaroos go into a poor plane of nutrition, they stop cycling, they won’t come into oestrogen season, they won’t get pregnant, and generally they will chuck their joeys out of their pouches so they can survive,” he said.

Experts are concerned a cull will decimate roo populations as they're already under stress. (PA/AAP)

“Populations will actually decrease because some will die, and less young are being born.”

Experts fear the relaxation in culling is going to place further stress on the native icon, and believe we must look for another solution.

"We are all feeling compassion for the farmers and their animals suffering through this drought,” Nicola Beynon, Head of Campaigns for Humane Society International in Australia, said.

“The whole environment is under severe stress and so compassion also needs to be extended to our native wildlife. Now is not the time to be taking short cuts with native animal welfare.

"What we’re seeing is human wildlife conflict, and we need to try and deal with this in a more sophisticated way.

“The problem with culling kangaroos during a drought is that it will be the fittest animals that are shot, the animals that would best survive the drought and rebuild a healthy population when conditions ease.

“Culling kangaroos in these conditions increases the risk of localised extinctions.”

Dr Spielman said there was a risk of animal cruelty associated with the practice as well.

“In a cull if you don’t use professional shooters they are not going to get clean shots and that’s going to be a problem,” he said.

“From a business point of view, professional shooters want a nice clean shot, where the animal is killed instantly as bullets are expensive. They don’t want to hurt the animals, they do it as a business.”

However, Minister Niall Blair stands by the cull.

"Many farmers are taking livestock off their paddocks, only to then see kangaroos move in and take whatever is left. This is the last thing any farmer needs at the moment,” a spokeswoman from the Office of Minister for Primary Industries told nine.com.au.

"The Government has streamlined the management of kangaroos, giving farmers more power to protect their properties, especially as they manage the challenging dry conditions.